Building Superheroes at Marvel

After witnessing the scene, Clint Barton dropped his weapon and slowly squatted down, burying his head in his hands.

With Natasha already defeated, resistance seemed futile. His priority now was survival.

As agents, the first thing they were taught was how to stay alive.

Being alive meant there was still a chance for a comeback, but being dead meant no chance at all.

"Boss, what should we do?" one of the enhanced warriors asked.

"Bind them up, these two are different from the scum we dealt with earlier."

The four enhanced warriors had code names ranging from 125 to 128, with the higher numbers indicating greater combat ability and authority. Those under the 100s were reserved for individuals with superpowers. For instance, Gasco held the designation 001, and as an experimental subject, he was numbered 087.

During the earlier fight, Number 125 quickly realized that Clint and Natasha were no ordinary agents. He was particularly surprised that Natasha had withstood his punch without immediate death.

His punch carried a force of 1.2 tons—strong enough to punch through iron, let alone the fragile human body.

"Got it," one of the warriors said, taking out a rope from a small bag and proceeding to tie up Natasha and Clint, who were temporarily incapacitated.

On the way, Number 125 grabbed whatever seemed useful, but what truly excited him were the two agents in front of him.

He planned to take them back as test subjects for the lab, hoping to please the researchers there.

"Number 128, give them a shot," Number 125 ordered.

"Yes, Captain!" came the prompt reply.

When Number 125 tugged on the rope, he realized it was too weak to keep the agents restrained for long. So, he called in the team's medical officer, who quickly injected Natasha and Clint with a muscle relaxant.

The Water Company produced highly effective drugs—nothing like the flawed products commonly available. Their muscle relaxants were specially designed to act on the nervous system, blocking muscle signals. Once injected, the effects couldn't be undone within half an hour unless the person had natural antibodies or an extraordinarily strong constitution.

Barton could only watch helplessly as Natasha collapsed to the ground, unable to move except for her head.

"Barton, I hate you," Natasha muttered, her voice tinged with frustration.

She wanted to vent about her partner, but at the same time, she regretted not retreating earlier when they found the bodies. It was too late now.

"Sorry," Barton replied, ashamed, not daring to meet her gaze. He knew it was his mistake. If they had retreated earlier, the worst they'd face would be a reprimand, not the situation they found themselves in now.

"Bring them along. These two bodies are unusual. They'll make great experimental subjects," Number 125 decided.

After confirming that both agents were no longer capable of fighting, Number 127 was assigned to transport them.

Without hesitation, Number 127 ripped off the crumbling iron sheet above them and laid the two agents on it. He then tied the rope around himself, ensuring he could drag them along with ease.

Given their enhanced strength, carrying the combined weight of about 320 pounds was hardly a challenge.

...

D4 Area

Gasco had rejoined the other five enhanced warriors. The four others hadn't arrived yet, but the first floor of the building had been cleared. The Red Queen had taken control of all communication systems, and the second floor was completely isolated.

The interior and exterior of the building were fully separated now. Even if Gasco and his team wiped out the entire second floor, it wouldn't affect anything outside.

"Here they come," Gasco muttered as he heard the sound of approaching footsteps. He opened his eyes and observed the four warriors coming into view. But when he saw what they were dragging behind them, his expression froze slightly, perplexed.

"Well done, No. 125!" Gasco called out in approval. "Damn, why didn't I think of capturing some hostages as test subjects?"

"My head is really spinning today," another warrior remarked. "Too bad the people in my sector were all eliminated."

The rest of the group nodded, realizing how obvious the solution was. They'd all forgotten that the company was in desperate need of experimental subjects. Now, a golden opportunity for a bonus and promotion had slipped through their fingers.

"Hey, our 'experiments' aren't ordinary. The woman took my punch and only got slightly injured," No. 125 proudly said, recounting his previous encounter. "These two are pretty tough, and if I hadn't been enhanced, I might've had some trouble."

"Wait, aren't you the one from the mission earlier?" Gasco asked, recalling a past encounter with S.H.I.E.L.D. agents. He was suddenly struck by a realization and added, "These two have a similar presence to the man in black I saw that day. I'm sure of it. They're superhumans with remarkable abilities."

"I'm sorry, I don't understand what you're talking about," Natasha replied nonchalantly, trying to deflect.

"Yes, we are!" Clint replied almost immediately, a mix of confusion and disbelief in his voice.

His reaction made Natasha look at him with some surprise. She wasn't expecting him to confirm it so readily, especially when they'd both been trained to maintain a strict code of confidentiality.

"You've been working elsewhere, so you don't know the whole story. Just leave this one to me," Natasha explained, her gaze shifting to Gasco's uniform. She had already connected the dots. If she hadn't been on vacation that day, she would've been with Coulson, not Hill. After reading the report on Gasco, she immediately recognized his uniform as No. 087, the designation of an experimental subject.

"You... wait!" Barton sighed, his frustration clear. He couldn't understand why Natasha had admitted it so easily. It felt like he was out of the loop entirely.

"Give them an antidote and untie them," Gasco ordered after a moment's pause. It seemed like they might need extra hands for the mission ahead, and if it was that organization, he might consider an alliance.

However, Gasco already planned to eliminate any traces of cooperation once their task was done. The Water Company had recently recovered from a previous debacle, and it was too fragile to handle any additional complications.

As for Barton and Natasha, Gasco figured that they'd be knocked out, tossed into a confinement room for a few months, and forgotten about. Getting them out of the way was the easy part. If they tried to infiltrate Water Company, it would be as impossible as assassinating the president.

Besides, if the Red Queen had her way, those agents would experience firsthand the company's cruel methods.